02 Jan Basildon Council backs campaign to make a difference and take the plastic pledge
Basildon Council has joined other local authorities to do its bit for the planet and are encouraging residents to join them and ‘Love Essex Not Plastic’.
The Essex-wide 2020 campaign aims to tackle the amount of waste across the county by highlighting the issue of single-use plastic and urging households to switch to reusable options and recycle more.
The campaign will launch on the 6 January with adverts on Heart Radio and social media, inspiring Essex residents to make a New Year’s resolution and say no to single-use plastic by taking the Love Essex Plastic Pledge. Throughout the year there will be easy swap ideas, such as ditching single-use plastic cups, bottles, straws and bags – switching to reusable ones instead. By focusing on one item every month and making one small change at a time, together we can make a difference.
Each year, around 400 million tonnes of plastic is produced and 40% of that is single-use plastic such as drinks bottles, carrier bags and coffee cups. However, in the UK, only 57% of plastic bottles are collected to be recycled.
Chairman of Basildon’s Neighbourhoods and Public Spaces Committee Councillor David Harrison said: “Thanks to programmes such as Blue Planet II and Drowning in Plastic, we’ve all seen the devastating impact of becoming a plastic planet. 2020 is a year of change and now it’s even more vital we all do whatever is necessary to deplete our reliance on single-use plastic. If everyone in Essex used one less plastic bottle, we’d save 1.5million bottles alone.”
If you want to be a part of the Love Essex plastic solution, take the Essex Plastic Pledge at www.loveessex.org/plasticpledge
